Volume 1 The Wind Rises Chapter 50: Zhao Kuangyi, the Gift of a Pillow
"asshole!"
Hearing the rumor that Luo Youdu was Fu Yanqing's chosen future son-in-law, Zhao Kuangyi couldn't help but curse.
"This bastard is my nemesis! Nothing good has happened to me since I met him."
The more successful Luo Youdu became, the deeper he felt the kick on his butt.
Now even the shortcut to promotion that he had planned has been taken away by the other party.
One thing after another, everything weighed on his head.
That feeling made the proud Zhao Kuangyi depressed to death.
"Kuang Yi, let's go. It's your turn on duty today. Don't be late."
The loud voice of eldest brother Zhao Kuangyin came from outside.
Zhao Kuangyi suppressed the depression in his heart and responded, "Coming!"
Zhao Kuangyi straightened his clothes and strode out of the house.
The two brothers mounted their horses and headed for the palace together.
Zhao Kuangyin said: "Our army's westward expedition this time is just an outpost. The real battle is coming later, don't be impatient. Luo Youdu is a civilian, and it is useless even if he is promoted quickly. Nowadays, having military power is the real truth. When you have made military achievements and hold the troops that can influence the situation, how can Luo Youdu compare with you?"
He knew that his younger brother had always been dissatisfied with Luo Youdu, and he was holding a grudge in his heart.
It’s just that Luo Youdu’s progress was so fast that he was almost comparable to himself, so he could only comfort him in a low voice.
Zhao Kuangyi's eyes lit up and he said, "Will there really be a war?"
Zhao Kuangyin glanced around and said softly, "Of course, once Meng Shu is attacked, it will certainly ask Liu Han and Southern Tang for help. Liu Han was defeated by our army in the last battle, and there are not many troops to support him. Li Yun, the governor of Zhaoyi Army stationed in Luzhou, is enough to deal with it. Southern Tang is different. They control both sides of the Yangtze River and are as powerful as us. If they move, the emperor will definitely go to the battle himself. You and I are both generals of the Palace Front Department, and we have plenty of opportunities to perform in front of the emperor. With my brother's talent, he will definitely be valued by the emperor. It is not difficult for him to be more favored than Luo Youdu."
I don’t know if it’s because the light is dark or for some other reason.
Anyway, Zhao Kuangyin felt that his younger brother Zhao Kuangyi was very powerful, even more capable than himself.
Of course, Zhao Kuangyi also thought so.
My brother is better than me in no other aspect except martial arts.
Zhao Kuangyi was fully prepared and silently told himself that he must make sure his men could master the battle formation he invented so that they could perform well in the battle against Southern Tang.
The two brothers entered the palace together.
When the patrolling soldiers on the road saw Zhao Kuangyin, they all became excited and called out in a low voice, "Du Yu Hou!" to show their respect.
Zhao Kuangyi showed envy in his eyes.
The imperial guards of the Zhou Dynasty were mainly divided into two categories, namely the Palace Front Division and the Imperial Guard Division.
Among them, the Palace Guard Division is the emperor's palace guard, the elite among the elite. The Imperial Guard Division is like the emperor's guard, with far more people than the Palace Guard Division, and slightly inferior to the Palace Guard Division in terms of strength, but it is also one of the most elite.
As the deputy chief of the Dianqian Division, Zhao Kuangyin participated in Chai Rong's reorganization of the Dianqian Division and was mainly responsible for training troops.
Zhao Kuangyi served as a guard in front of the palace, standing guard for the emperor.
The two brothers also parted ways in the palace.
Zhao Kuangyin continued to train his soldiers.
Zhao Kuangyi went to the inner palace's direct barracks and arranged the more than a hundred soldiers under his command to patrol and stand guard in various halls.
Before he reached the inner palace barracks, Zhao Kuangyi heard voices coming from the barracks.
Frowning, Zhao Kuangyi walked forward lightly and listened carefully.
I heard someone say, "Don't treat Judge Luo as an ordinary scholar. He is our brother, not a cowardly scholar. He is a man who drinks and eats meat with big mouthfuls. He is very heroic. Otherwise, do you think a hero like the King of Wei would write a letter of recommendation for him? And even marry his daughter to him?"
Zhao Kuangyi recognized this voice, it was Zhang Qiong, and he was the best among all the guards under him. He had always wanted to subdue him and make him the core of his formation, but he was so stupid that he hadn't mastered the trick for a month.
At this moment, hearing him speak well of Luo Youdu, a surge of anger surged in my heart.
"It must be a lie!" someone said in disbelief.
"I think so too. With a fat head and big ears like you, even if someone is not an ordinary scholar, he won't call you a brother!"
Zhang Qiong's voice came into his ears again: "Don't disbelieve me, my elder brother Zhang Jin is under Judge Luo. I will take you to my home for a drink when we have a day off. I will invite Brother Luo to come and introduce him to you."
When Zhao Kuangyi heard this, a fierce look flashed in his eyes. If he was allowed to learn his formation diagram, wouldn't it be the same as giving it to Luo Youdu for free?
…
The imperial court was ready to send troops to Qinchuan, but there was no clear statement on when to do so.
After all, marching an army to war is not a game, it cannot be done at will.
It takes time to mobilize troops, prepare food supplies, and recruit laborers.
This wait lasted for more than a month, and Luo Youdu took advantage of this time to arrange everything in Kaifeng Prefecture one by one.
It was not until early January of the following year that Luo Youdu received the exact date of departure: February 1, the second year of Xian De.
February 1st is a good day to go on an expedition.
March and April are the spring ploughing seasons. Sending troops at this time can just disrupt the enemy's spring ploughing, and the first batch of withdrawn laborers can also catch up with the spring ploughing.
Originally, Meng Shu's grain had to be transported from Hanzhong to the front line through the long and narrow Shu Road. Now they were able to disrupt the enemy's spring plowing on the front line, and before the war even started, they had a certain advantage in terms of grain.
Luo Youdu leisurely read the military book "Sun Tzu's Notes" written by Cao Cao.
Compared to the profound "The Art of War", Boss Cao's "Sun Tzu's Notes" is more to Luo Youdu's liking.
The Art of War is too general, but Boss Cao summarized the theories of the original text based on his own experience, and attached actual combat cases and analyzed factors such as geographical environment, which he read with great interest.
"Judge!"
Zhang Jin appeared outside the office.
"Come in!" Luo Youdu looked at Zhang Jin's face which looked a little sad and angry, and called him in.
“Plop!”
Zhang Jin suddenly knelt in front of Luo Youdu and said, "Please save my second brother!"
"What's wrong?" Luo Youdu hurried forward to help him up: "Tell me slowly, what happened to Zhang Qiong?"
Zhang Jin said indignantly, "I don't know how my second brother has offended Zhao Kuangyi. He has been looking for trouble with my second brother for nearly a month. My second brother has been beaten by military law four times in a row. Each time is more severe than the last. Just yesterday, he was beaten with military sticks for a full twenty times. His skin was torn and his flesh was exposed. If it continues, I am really afraid that he will be beaten to death. My brother and I have no relatives in Kaifeng. The only person we can ask for help is you."
Luo Youdu didn't know whether to laugh or not, and said, "It's true that someone brings a pillow when you want to sleep. This time, I just need a confidant with strong martial arts skills, so let Zhang Qiong go with me."
Zhang Jin's face lit up with joy, but then he said worriedly, "I'm afraid Zhao Kuangyi won't let me go."
Luo Youdu was not worried at all and said, "I will go to Zhao Kuangyin to ask for the person, and he will give me this face."
